Family law

Question 1

marriage

Answer 1

a legal relationship between adults

Question 2

what is required to prove breach of a promise to marry

Answer 2

either a signed writing or independent witness testimony

Question 3

when is a marital gift revocable?

Answer 3

If the gift was given in contemplation of marriage and the donor would not have made the gift but for the belief that donee would marry

Question 4

ceremonial marriage

Answer 4

spouses must
1. obtain a marriage license
2. hold ceremony
3. and be wed by a properly qualified official

Question 5

putative marriage doctrine

Answer 5

even if a valid marriage never existed, a person who believed in good faith that he or she was married may claim property rights as if the couple was married.
Requires 1. a good faith belief that they were married and 2. cohabitation

Question 5

common law marriage requirements

Answer 5

1. cohabitation
2. hold themselves out as married
3. and display an intent to be married

Question 5

Premarital agreement

Answer 5

must be
1. voluntary
2. informed (both parties must make adequate reasonable disclosures of financial assets)
3. not unconscionable

Question 5

Uniform Premarital Agreement Act

Answer 5

prenups are enforceable unless
1. it was unconscionable when signed AND
2. the party lacked a fair and reasonable disclosure

Question 6

Alimony factors

Answer 6

1. each party’s needs
2. ability to pay
3. earning potential
4. capacity for self support
5. contributions to the marriage
6. separate assets
7. duration of the marriage

Question 7

types of alimony

Answer 7

1. rehabilitative
2. reimbursement
3. permanent

Question 8

Custody factors

Answer 8

CHILDS BEST INTEREST
also
1.child’s preferences
2.emotional bonds between parents and child
3.party’s ability to care for the child
4.party’s mental and physical health
5.child’s relationship with siblings
6.party’s ability to provide the child with stability
7.party’s willingness to facilitate contact between child and other parent
8.party’s history of substance abuse or DV

Question 9

when can courts modify a custody order

Answer 9

1. there has been a material and substantial change in circumstances that allows modification and
2. modification is in the child’s best interest

Question 10

relocation requirements

Answer 10

1. relocation is in the child’s best interests
2. reasonable purpose for the move

Question 11

Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act sources of jurisdiction

Answer 11

1. home-state
2. recent-home-state
3. significant-connection

Question 12

home state juridiction

Answer 12

state where a child lives with a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the custody proceeding commenced. Supersedes any other form of jurisdiction

Question 13

Recent home state jurisdiction

Answer 13

1. the state was the child’s home state within 6 months of the custody proceeding and
2. the child is absent from the state but a parent still lives there

Question 14

Significant connection jurisdiction

Answer 14

1. the child and at least one parent have a significant connection with the state beyond mere physical presence and
2. substantial evidence is available in that state concerning the child’s care, protection, personal relationships, and training

Question 15

Emergency jurisdiction

Answer 15

1. a child is present in the state and has been abandoned or
2. the child has been abused or threatened with abuse

Question 16

child support personal jurisdiction

Answer 16

1. personally served while present in the state
2. consent to jurisdiction
3. lived with the child in the state
4. lived in the state and either provided support or paid prenatal expenses
5. engaged in sex in the state that may have resulted in conception of the child
6. listed himself in a putative father registry in the state

Question 17

child support modification

Answer 17

generally require a substantial or material change in circumstances that make the existing obligation unreasonable

Question 18

when does a state have jurisdiction over an adoption?

Answer 18

1. the child lived in the state with a parent for at least six months consecutive before the proceeding
2. the adoptive parent lived in the state for six months before the proceeding and substantial evidence concerning the child’s care is in the state
3. the adoption agency is in the state and jurisdiction is in the best interest of the child
4. the child and adoptive parent are physically present in the state and the child is subject to abandonment or abuse OR
5. no other state has jurisdiction, or another has declined jurisdiction, and it is in the best interest of the child that the state assume jurisdiction

Question 19

adoption venue

Answer 19

in the county where
1. the adoptive parent lives
2. the child lives
OR
3. an office of the adoption agency is located

Question 20

proceedings required for an adoption

Answer 20

1. court must determine that adoption is in the best interests of the child,
2. approve the adoption,
3. terminate bio parents rights, and
4. issue a final adoption order

Question 21

when is an unwed father’s consent required for an adoption

Answer 21

when the father has attempted to create a substantial relationship with the child
Or
when the child is an infant and the father has manifested a willingness to take on parental responsibility